By Jenn Pelly on September 25, 2012 at 3:40 p.m. EDT

Dischord has announced a string of new releases for the fall from some of the label's key players. First, on October 23, the label will release an unearthed collection of demos from Rites of Spring, the mid-80s proto-emo band of Guy Picciotto and Brendan Canty, who would later play in Fugazi. The previously unreleased Six Song Demo, recorded at Inner Ear Studios with Ian MacKaye and veteran D.C. punk producer Don Zientara, documents the group's formative days.

By Carrie Battan on April 11, 2012 at 4:15 p.m. EDT

In addition to the 11 studio albums they released between 1988 and 2006, Baltimore Dischord vets Lungfish have a ton of material stashed in the vaults. They've compiled ten tracks recorded during a 1999 session for a new release, titled A.C.R. 1999 (they were recorded at A.C.R. Studios in Baltimore). Recorded and mixed by Craig Bowen, six of these songs were later re-recorded and released on the 2000 album Necrophones. Dischord will release the collection on May 14.

By Tom Breihan on March 10, 2009 at 2:30 p.m. EDT

A huge part of the story of Dischord Records-- still one of the greatest indie labels ever to exist-- is the label's general longstanding aversion to commercialism. Fugazi, for instance, always refused to license their name for T-shirts, which forced kids who still wanted to publicly claim allegiance to the band to spend the 90s walking around in bootleg "This Is Not a Fugazi T-Shirt" T-shirts. (Yeah, I had one.)

So when teenybop mall fashion institution Forever 21 welded the logo of Dischord flagship band Minor Threat onto what looks like Hair Cuttery wall art from 1986 and then slapped it on a shirt, it's a problem. The resulting atrocity, which looks like some bullshit that Jenny Humphrey might design on "Gossip Girl", can no longer be found on the Forever 21 website, and we might have the band themselves to thank for that.

"This is an unauthorized shirt and it is still unclear whether the shirt was produced by Forever 21 or if it is a bootleg that they just happen to carry. Either way the members of Minor Threat are looking into it and Forever 21 will be asked to stop selling it.

"In the beginning, Minor Threat did not license anything and any shirts you saw were screened by band member Jeff Nelson. But Jeff stopped screening shirts and over the years the band members realized that the shirts were going to be made with or without their permission, so they may as well authorize a couple friendly printers in order to better control the quality, content and revenue.

"The band and the label tend to deal with bootleg shirts on a case by case basis, acknowledging the vast difference between kids screening shirts for friends and professional printing studios screening shirts for profit. Obviously this absurd Forever 21 shirt falls under the 'unacceptable' category."

This isn't the first time Dischord has had to deal with Minor Threat-related copyright infringement. In 2005, Nike launched a skateboarding tour called Major Threat. On their poster, they used an almost exact copy of the image that originally appeared on the first Minor Threat 7". After the campaign pissed off enough people, Nike pulled the poster and apologized.

However, Bourgeois downplays any connection between the Nike case and the Forever 21 one. He tells Pitchfork, "It's apples and oranges. Minor Threat shirts get bootlegged all the time and, as is the case with all bootlegs, it's a simple case of selling something under the false pretense that it is band approved and that the band will see some of the revenue. In the Nike example they were attempting to hijack Minor Threat imagery in order to link themselves to the band's legacy as a means to sell something completely unrelated to the band or the label."

So, small potatoes, I guess. In any case, the offending Minor Threat shirt is now gone from the Forever 21 website. Bourgeois doesn't know if the band or the label were involved in their removal. "I just know that the band was making some calls," he says.

But if you really need to get a piece of strident hardcore agitprop band merch at Forever 21, this Public Enemy shirt is still available.

By Caroline Bermudez on June 28, 2005 at 12:00 a.m. EDT

On Thursday, we reported that Nike Skateboarding used a classic Minor Threat album cover for its "Major Threat" 2005 East Coast Tour posters without asking permission. Much had been heard from the justifiably angry Dischord Records camp, including former Minor Threat frontman and label co-founder Ian MacKaye, who expressed his outrage towards the sneaker conglomerate. Nike had remained oddly silent until yesterday, when it issued a formal apology to both Dischord and Minor Threat.

In its letter of mea culpa, Nike Skateboarding states, "Because of the album's strong imagery, and because our East Coast tour ends in Washington DC, we felt it was a perfect fit. This was a poor judgment call and should not have been executed without consulting Minor Threat and Dischord Records." The letter also says that the advertising agencies Wieden & Kennedy and Odopod should not share blame for the poster image. Furthermore, Nike Skateboarding has removed all print and digital flyers for the tour bearing the Minor Threat image.

In an attempt to make peace with the legendary hardcore band, the letter extends this olive branch: "All of the Nike employees responsible for the creation of the tour flyer are fans of both Minor Threat and Dischord records [sic] and have nothing but respect for both." See guys, it was a case of idol worship gone terribly wrong! Nike is totally down with underground music and skate culture.

It is unclear whether Dischord will pursue future action against Nike. No responses to the letter have been made by MacKaye or anyone else at Dischord.

Here's the apology in full:

June 27, 2005

To: Minor Threat, Dischord Records and fans of both

Re: Major Threat East Coast Tour Poster

Nike Skateboarding sincerely apologizes for the creation of a tour poster inspired by Minor Threat's album cover. Despite rumors being circulated, Wieden & Kennedy and Odopod had nothing to do with the creation of this tour poster and should not be held accountable. To set the record straight, Nike Skateboarding's "Major Threat" Tour poster was designed, executed and promoted by skateboarders, for skateboarders. All of Nike employees responsible for the creation of the tour flyer are fans of both Minor Threat and Dischord Records and have nothing but respect for both.

Minor Threat's music and iconographic album cover have been an inspiration to countless skateboarders since the album came out in 1984. And for members of the Nike Skateboarding staff, this is no different. Because of the album's strong imagery and because our East Coast tour ends in Washington, DC, we felt that it was a perfect fit. This was a poor judgment call and should not have been executed without consulting Minor Threat and Dischord Records.

We apologize for any problems this may have caused, and want to make very clear that we have no relationship with the members of Minor Threat, Dischord Records and they have not endorsed our products.

Every effort has been made to remove and dispose of all flyers (both print and digital). Again, Nike Skateboarding sincerely apologizes to Minor Threat and Dischord Records.